Conventionally, a system has been known that executes start-and-stop control to have the engine of a vehicle stop automatically if a predetermined stop condition is satisfied, and then, to have the engine restart automatically if a predetermined restarting condition is satisfied (see, for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2000-18060). In such a system, once the engine has been stopped and then restarted automatically, if the predetermined stop condition is satisfied, the engine is stopped automatically again.
However, inconvenience may arise if the engine is stopped automatically again in response to the predetermined stop condition being satisfied after the engine has been stopped and then restarted automatically. Specifically, for example, if the restarting condition that has been satisfied is a requirement about an acceleration operation or a requirement about a steering operation, it is highly likely that the driver is preparing to start from a stopped state of the vehicle. In this case, contrary to the driver's intention, the engine is stopped automatically in response to the satisfied predetermined stop condition being satisfied after having the engine restart automatically.